Richard Carlson is president and CEO of the Muskegon-based Goodwill Industries.MLive file photo

The Walmart Foundation recently announced a $7.7 million
grant to 45 Goodwill chapters -- including the chapter in West Michigan -- that will
run a program called Beyond Jobs, aimed at helping women.

The money will be awarded to Goodwill chapters as they meet
goals for helping women find jobs, budget to spend their earnings wisely, find
healthy food and maintain stable family lives.

Richard Carlson, president and CEO of the Muskegon-based Goodwill Industries of West Michigan chapter, said women – both married and single – have been hard-hit in recent years.

As a group, men nationally lost a larger percentage of
their jobs in the recession, "but women have had a much tougher time, without
question during the recovery," he said.

Only 26 percent of the women who lost jobs during the
recession have regained them, according to U.S. Department of Labor
statistics cited by Carlson. That figure compares to 42 percent of men who have
regained their jobs.

"While the recession hurt everyone, women are having a much harder
time getting back to where they were," he said.

The Beyond Jobs program helps women get around needs for transportation,
childcare, or medical care – "whatever is presenting itself as a barrier" to getting
hired, Carlson said.

Carlson said the program will be just one of Goodwill's efforts at
helping area residents. In 2012, Goodwill Industries of West Michigan helped
20,800 people search and train for employment.